Recipes with bay leaves

Saure Kartoffel, a traditional Swabian sour potato dish with a tangy butter-onion sauce flavored with bay leaf, lemon zest, clove, and caraway. German comfort food.

Southern-style no-bean chili with 4 lbs of beef, banana peppers, and a 3-hour simmer in beef stock with barbecue sauce, hot sauce, and a deep spice blend. Bold and beanless.

Cubed beef chuck slow-baked in burgundy wine and French onion soup until fork-tender with a thick, rich gravy. Serve over buttered noodles for an effortless dinner.

Red beans and rice with green and red bell peppers, tomatoes, celery and a kick of chili and hot sauce. A Louisiana-leaning bean pot built on dried kidney and pinto beans, finished with a splash of cider vinegar.

Braised red cabbage with apple, a German-style side simmered with onion, cloves, and bay, finished with sugar and vinegar for the classic sweet-sour balance. Vegan and low calorie.

Italian sausage, chickpeas, and pasta shells simmer together in a fennel-scented tomato sauce with chunky zucchini. A rustic one-pot dinner ready in an hour. Skip the sausage for a meatless version.

Monkfish chili with kidney beans, bell peppers, and a bold spice blend of cumin, cayenne, and Cajun seafood seasoning. A seafood twist on classic chili with real depth.

Hearty chicken vegetable noodle soup made from a whole simmered chicken with tomatoes, corn, zucchini, mushrooms, and egg noodles. From pot to bowl in about an hour.

Creamy low-calorie crab and asparagus soup with dry sherry, lemon zest, and fresh vegetables in a light skim milk base. A guilt-free bowl of comfort ready in one hour.

One-pot Italian chicken and rice baked with tomatoes, olives, pimentos, and green peas. The rice toasts golden before baking and absorbs all the pan juices.

Freshly ground cardamom, cloves, and cumin give this yogurt-marinated chicken biryani its heady, aromatic punch. Served over saffron rice, it's a weeknight-friendly take on an Indian classic.

Chicken pieces steamed with zucchini, carrots, potatoes, and fresh tarragon, served in soup bowls with a reduced white wine and shallot sauce. A light, elegant French-style one-pot dinner.

Austrian Wiener Schnitzel seasoned with Worcestershire, mustard, and Parmesan, then breaded and pan-fried in butter. Served with a velvety tomato-cream sauce that steals the show.

Here's a recipe for pumpkin soup. It comes from Jon Gatewood, the executive chef of Emma's restaurant in the Silas Griffith Inn in Danby, Vermont.

Louisiana courtbouillon with red snapper and oysters in a dark roux-thickened tomato sauce with the Creole holy trinity, mushrooms, and bay. Served over hot rice. A classic Cajun seafood stew.

A paprika-rubbed whole roasted chicken stuffed with garlic, orange peel, bay leaves, and rosemary, finished with a reduced pan sauce. Sunday dinner at its finest.